Package opener



Dec. 4, 1934. B. WENDEL 4 1,982,973

PACKAGE OPENER Filed Dec. 16, 1931 lNvENTQR uw Lr ATTQRNEY a Frans B. Wendel to tear oil merely Patented Dec. 4, 1934 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE;

4 Claims.

My present invention relates to opener devices and more particularly to an improved opener and closure for packages and particularly packages wrapped in relatively tough material.

5 Articles at the present day, and particularly articles relatively small in size, as cigarettes and confections, are wrapped in packages, the covering of the packages being either of paper surrounded With a layer of cellophane or similar l0 material or wrapped in cellophane or similar material and without any other enclosing cover. Such packages are relatively hard to open as the cellophane or similar material isextreniely dilcult to tear. In such packages, it is usual a corner of the package and remove the articles singly from the package as needed, the package then retaining its shape and forming a protective covering for the remaining articles therein. 'Ihis is particularly true of cigarettes which are ordinarily packed in groups of ten or twenty andthe purchaser ordinarily manually removes a corner of the package to gain access to the interior thereof.

Cellophane is at the present time ordinarily employed in the connection of packaging of cigarettes and confections and due to the extreme diii'iculty in initiating a tear therein, such packages are diiilcult to open.

In my present invention, I have obviated the present objections to the present day packages and have devised an improved means for facilitating the opening of the package and which readily initiates a tear in the now ordinary cellophane or other similar covering. Further, my invention is adapted to be utilized as a. removable covering for the package to open or close the orice made during the opening of the package, and the element embodying my invention may have stamped thereon or therein or afdxed thereto any desired indicia or advertising matter that may be desired and such indicia is readily visible and readable through the usual cellophane wrapping. Further, by the 'use oi' my device, the ordinary package is readily opened and when opened has a deilnite extent oi' opening and the opening may be readily made by the use of thumb and lingers only, whether such hand is gloved or unglovei and further 4there are no sharp points or edges which might possibly injure the finger or ilngernails ot the user. My device is capable oi.' being made of any suitable sheet metal such as tin plate or aluminum or aluminum alloys 0r 0f l10nmetallic material; if desired and is of appropri- 55 ate size and material to be readily assembled in the package during the making of such package.

The object of my invention thereforefis an' improved opener for packages and the like.

In the accompanying drawing illustrating preferred embodiments of my invention:

Fig. 1` is an elevation partly broken away and showing my device in position in a package;

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of a package in which is incorporated my improved device, such packages being shown in position in the hand of the user preparatory to` making an opening in such package;

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the `improved opening device that is incorporated in the struc- 7 0 ture in Fig. 2; f

Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the package shown in Fig. 2 and after the first step in the forming of theopening therein;

Fig. 5 is a perspective vi'ew of this device 75 shown in Fig. 3, after the step of forming the opening as shown in Fig. 4, has been completed;

Fig. 6 is a perspective view of the package illustrated in Figs. 2 and 4 and showing-'the completion of the opening operation; 80

Fig. 7 is a perspective view of the device shown in Figs. 3 and 5 and inthe condition after the operation as shown in Fig. 6 is completed;

Fig. 8 is a, plan view of the package shown in Fig. 6 and showing the opening in the package 85 completed;

Fig. 9 is a side elevation showing in full lines the opening device as incorporated in the'strlicture or Fig. 2 and with the opener in the condition shown in Fig. 3 and in dotted lines the po- 90 sition o1' the movableportionl of the opener device in the position as shown in Fig. 8;

Fig. 10 is a sectional elevation on .the line 10--10 of Fig. 9; and v Fig. 11 is a developed view o1' the improved 95 opener device.

Referring to the drawing, there is shown in Fig. 1 a package of a pluralityoi' articles 10', such package comprising a wrapper 11 of cellophane or similar material having incorporated 10o therein an opener. device such as is shown in Fig. 11m developed form, where 12 designates the main body of the opener having an-end portion 13Qgdapted to be folded over on the dotted line 14 into parallel relation-withthe body 105 12 and having at its other end a member 15 adapted to be connected to the main body portion 12 by an integral connector 16 which acts as a flexible hinge. The main portion 12 and the member 13 are ci generally rectangular 110 dotted line 20 as a hinge causing pressed thereon or therein or printed thereonor attached thereto in any desired way advertising matter or other indicia as indicated by the figure designated by the numeral 18 in Fig. 1. Attached to or preferably formed integral with the member 15 is a member 19 adapted to be folded at right angles to the portion 15 along the line 20 as shown in Figs. 9 and 11 and with a member 21 adapted to be folded along the line 22 upwardly and parallel to the member 19 and with a serrated edge member 23 adapted to be folded substantially parallel to the upper face of the member 15, with the edges of the serrated portion 23 extending upwardly to a slight extent as shown in Fig. 9. The opener as above described is placed in this condition within the package as shown in Fig. 1 or within the packages as shown in Figs. 3, 4 and 6 and is wrapped within the wrappings of such package. This is the condition in which the package comes to the purchaser.

The package, as for example, the package 17 is adapted to be held in the hand 24 of the user, the fingers 25 acting as a stop for the pressure created by the thumb 25 of such user and, referring to Fig. 2 it will be seen that if the user 24 holds the package 17 as shown in such figure and presses with the thumb 25 as indicated that such thumb willforce the member 21 inwardly so as to pivot the members 21 and 19 about the the serrated upwardly through the member 23 to force itself or into the position wrappings of the package `shown in Fig. 4. If the operator now moves the thumb 25 upwardly with respect to the package as indicated in Fig. 6, the member 15 will be moved about the flexible hinge 16 and into the position shown in Fig. 6, in suchmovement tearing the wrappings of the package and dening an opening as indicated in such figure. The operator preferably continuesthis upward movement, or the pivoting movement of the member 15 labout the hinge 16,l until the same assumes the position shown in Fig. 8, exposing the articles within the package in order to afford easy -access thereto. The members 15, 19, 21 and 23 now assume the position shown in dotted lines in Fig. 9. The opener device may position shown in Fig. 8, or as indicated in dotted lines in Fig. 9, or after the required number of articles have been removed from the contact 17 the main body 12 of the opener may be slid to the right as shown in Fig. 8 to act as a cover for the opening made thereby.

The folded over member 13 acts to prevent possible tearing of the wrapping of the package and while desirable is not necessary as the same may be readily dispensed with without departing from the spirit of the invention. It isobvious that with my device packages may be readily opened and without danger of injury to be left inV the either the contents of the package or to the finger or finger-nails of the person using the same. Also, it is obvious that a well-defined opening of pre-determined size is made in the package, the size of the opening being commensurate with the size of the articles enclosed in the package and while the opening may be anything desired, it is preferred to make an opening large enough to have ready. access to the articles without too much danger of the remaining articles falling out of the package when not wanted.

It is obvious that various modifications of the device will suggest themselves to those skilled in the art and while therefore I have necessarily described4 by invention, somewhat in detail, it is to be understood that I am not to be limited to the exact construction shown as the same may be modied Within relatively wide limits without departing from the spirit of the invention.

I claim:

1. The combination with a container, of an opener completely enclosed in the container and including a main portion and an end portion, and having a perforating element arranged parallel to the end portion of the opener and transversely of the container, and means integral with the` perforating element and the end portion of the opener and rotatable on the end of such end portion as a pivot to force the perforating element thru the container Wall adjacent the' opener.

2. An improved opener for a container and adapted to be completely enclosed in the container comprising a main body, an end portion,

a flexible hinge member connecting the main one end thereof, a perforating element hingedly mounted at one end of the cover member and means for rotating the perforating element extending at one angle to the cover member.

4. Thevcornbination with a container, of an opener completely enclosed in the container and comprising a body and end member lying in the same plane, said end member formed integral with and hingedly attached to the body, a perforating element formed integral with the end member and hingedly attached thereto at the end remote from the body member and means for rotating the perforating element, said perforating element being rotatable with respect to the end member to perforate the wall of the container and the end member being rotatable -with respect to the body to tear the wall of the 

